Last summer I created a 2-day Rome itinerary that was packed to the brim with all the must-dos in Rome plus capturing some more local vibes. After all, it was my Mom’s first and potentially last time to visit the city, so we had to make sure we fit it all in. 

We went in August (yes, it was hot!), but this 2-day Rome itinerary would be suitable for almost any time of year, though if it were rainy, cold, or windy, it might be a bit less fun to navigate. 

I’ve made this itinerary super straightforward, including the times we did everything so if you’re looking for something easy to follow without overcomplicating the planning, this is the perfect guide for that.

Disclosure: Some links to products and recommendations are affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase (at no extra cost to you).

Bookmark My First Timer 2 Days in Rome Schedule

I read a lot of blogs for in-depth Rome travel tips and information, but I needed a concise schedule to follow, especially with so many reservations. So I created a database in Notion with timings, where to buy tickets, and more.

You can open my 2-day Rome itinerary in Notion and easily access it while you’re in Rome to follow along.

As there are so many things to navigate, such as public transit, waiting in packed lines, having a schedule laid out helps me stay on track and know what to do next.

How to Buy Tickets for Spending 2 Days in Rome

One thing to know about visiting Rome for two days is that many attractions require ticket reservations. 

These include (links include reservation pages on GetYourGuide):

• Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel (booked together as it’s the same location)
• Colosseum, Roman Forum, & Palatine Hill (usually booked in one ticket)
• Pantheon

How Early Should You Make Ticket Reservations?

This depends on the attraction. For the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel and the Colosseum, Roman Forum & Palatine Hill, I booked tickets about a month in advance in the midst of summer. Booking two months out might be the safest move, especially if you want to ensure you get the time slots you want. 

For the Pantheon, we were able to reserve the day before, making it one of the more flexible things to plan into the 2-day Rome itinerary.

I booked our tickets for the Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel on Klook (as I use them frequently), but ended up booking direct for the Colosseum as third-party platforms had very limited time slots. 

Pro tip: To keep all your bookings in one place and save money, check out the Rome Pass on Klook. But do check that your desired time slots are available first.

Best Affordable Place to Stay in Rome for 2 Days

Before we get into it, I want to share where we stayed, the Guest House Relais Indipendenza. It’s located about a 10-minute walk from Roma Termini and a 3-minute walk from the bus. 

The location isn’t in a busy area, so it’s really nice to return to after a long day of being in crowds of other tourists. And it felt quite safe. 

The host was incredibly friendly, and the room we booked was very spacious. 

And did I mention we paid “price” for 4 nights? If you’re looking to save money, yet have comfortable space with easy transport options, you can’t go wrong staying here. 

Day 1: The Vatican, Sistine Chapel, Aventine Hill, Trastevere

7:00 AM: Vatican & St. Peter’s Basilica

Does St. Peter’s Basilica require tickets to enter? No, it is free, and no reservation or booked time slot is required. 

If you want to enter the dome, then yes, you do need tickets. Or you can also reserve an audio guide. You can book these on the official website, and keep in mind that they are booked by time slots. 

The Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica open at 7:00 AM (may change depending on holidays), so we arrived first thing. Outside the Vatican, you need to go through security, and in the midst of summer, the line wasn’t too bad. But we also arrived at about 6:50 AM.

I read reviews about the line being crazy long, so we made sure to arrive as soon as possible. 

Once you enter through security, you are free to wander the grounds or head straight for the Basilica. 

To be honest, I didn’t know a lot about St. Peter’s Basilica (nor am I religious), so I appreciated walking through a piece of history, as it’s a masterpiece of art and architecture. There are also over 90 popes buried inside. It’s so beautiful and hard to fathom the work and dedication put into it. 

8:30 AM: Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel (Timed Entry Required)

Ya’ll, if there’s any museum you see in your life, this has to be in the top 5. In fact, it’s probably one of the favorites I’ve ever been to. The Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel in this 2-day Rome itinerary are a 1000% must-do for first-timers.  

How Much time do You Need for the Vatican & Sistine Chapel Museums? This is one thing to do in Rome to definitely go early for. This museum is massive, and we spent about 4 hours seeing it all, plus grabbing some light bites in the museum cafe. 

The works in the museum come from “time periods,” and I was particularly blown away by how massive some of the sculptures were. If there’s anything I learned about Rome, is they love massive sculptures. 

Pro tip: Bring an ID with you, as they require it at check-in.

12:30 PM: Grab Lunch 

For lunch, I hadn’t planned anything specific. There are tons of restaurants and quick bites in the area. 

My Mom loves her salads and doesn’t enjoy a carb overload as I do, so we just found a spot with salad options and ate there. Sorry, no advice on this one!

1:30 PM: Castel Sant’Angelo

After a morning full of engagement, we took in the energy of Rome as we walked towards Castel Sant’Angelo. 

Today it’s a museum, but it was originally built far back in 139 AD! The towering cylinder-shaped building was a tomb and later served as a military stronghold. 

As we were already museum’d out in this 2-day Rome itinerary, we decided not to go in, but hung about the area and took some photos. It’s also by the river and is a delightful walk. 

2:30 PM: Bus to Aventine Hill for Skyline Views

Did You Need a Special Pass for the Bus in Rome? To use the buses (and metro) in Rome, you can simply tap your credit card. 

Just across the river from the Castel Sant’Angelo is a bus stop where you can take bus #1 across the city to Aventine Hill. Well…the stop is, and you need to walk about 10 minutes uphill for the views. 

There are a few viewpoint spots as well as a famous keyhole to look through for a view of the skyline. The line there was quite long, though, and since we could already see the wide skyline, we didn’t do it. If that’s something of interest to you, be sure to do so! 

Personally, I was more intrigued by this massive tub and sculpture. Again, the massive and intricate sculptures in Rome, just casually about, were one of my favorite aspects of the city. 

4:30 PM: Head to Trastevere

From Aventine Hill, you can walk about 20/30 minutes over to Trastevere, a more local neighborhood in Rome. Yes, there were still tourists around, but it was nowhere near as tourist-centric as other parts of Rome. 

I’m so glad I decided to include this in our 2-day in Rome itinerary as the neighborhood had a creative edge to it, and lots of food! 

To take a rest, we stopped at a cafe for a small bite. Then we wandered about the neighborhood more. 

For a fantastic gelato, stop at “name”

6:00 PM: Dinner at La Gattbuia (May Need a Reservation)

La Gattabuia was a delicious addition to our 2-day Rome itinerary I had seen recommended online a few times. They were not wrong; it hit the spot.

When we arrived, it wasn’t at all busy, but we had still made reservations just in case. 

I had the ravioli, and my goodness, the rich sauce and stuffed raviolis were divine. One of the most memorable meals I ate in Italy. Or maybe I was a few too Campari’s deep. 

Day 2 in Rome: The Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill & More

8:15 AM: The Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill

Do You Need Timed Entry? Of all three, the only one that requires timed entry is the Colosseum. Be sure to arrive about 15 minutes before your scheduled time slot. Once you’re in, you can roam on your own time. 

The packaged ticket itself offers 24-hour entry, but when you purchase your tickets, the time slot you book for is the Colosseum. The other two don’t require timed entry.

Since this is a 2-day Rome itinerary, and time is limited, I recommend planning them all in the same day.

Which should you visit first? If you’re visiting in the summer, heading to the Colosseum first thing in your 2-day Rome itinerary is a safe bet. Plus, while you could visit the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill first, you would have to ensure you are on time for a later reservation at the Colosseum. 

By hitting the Colosseum first, you have the rest of the day to visit the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill without any time restraints. 

There’s also a free audio guide when you enter the Colosseum, but you will need to have enough data to download it on the spot. I did this, struggled to get it to work, but once it downloaded, the audio guide worked great. 

Pro tip: If you want early entry to the Colosseum, book your ticket far in advance (like a month out, especially in summer).

12:00 PM: Lunch

Before continuing on to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, it’s necessary to ensure nobody’s getting hangry.

There are plenty of restaurants around the Colosseum, and I quickly read up on some reviews of a place called The Pizza Forum. Decision made.

The interior caught me off guard with its colorful and elegant flair. You’d think it was somewhere super expensive, but it was fair. 

As in the name, they’re known for their pizza, which was incredible. We also shared some veg. I don’t care if it’s a touristy spot; we are tourists after all…and it was better than I imagined. 

12:30 PM: Roman Forum & Palatine Hill

Pro tip: The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill are both fully outside, so if it’s sunny, you have your sun protection, hat, or even a sun umbrella. 

There’s something about any historic site that is so old and distant that it tugs at something within you. It’s a distant time that connects to our present-day story, but is still a life we could never understand existing in. To be honest, this whole two-day in Rome itinerary is just experiencing a time we can’t fully comprehend.

Give yourself a good 3 to 4 hours for the Roman Forum & Palatine Hill. My Mom and I hit a point where we still had some areas to explore but were simply exhausted. 

Especially considering we still had a few more iconic places to visit, which brings us to the next point in our 2-day Rome itinerary: Trevi Fountain.

5:00 PM: Trevi Fountain

From the Colosseum area, you can either take the bus or metro to the Trevi neighborhood to get to the Trevi Fountain. 

Now, people are known for visiting the fountain as early as possible (like 5 AM). And yes, you could absolutely fit it in either day of these this 2-day Rome itinerary before hopping into the rest of the day.

But we couldn’t be bothered to wake up that early, and our hotel was not that close, so we opted for sleep instead. 

The Trevi Fountain is free, but you do need to wait in line to get in. I mean, otherwise, it would be far too crowded beyond what it already is. 

To be honest, I thought it would be overhyped, but damn, it is one massive, attention-demanding fountain. 

5:30 PM: Gelato Break

If you’re feeling peckish, there are plenty of lil shops around Trevi Fountain for gelato and other treats. This spot is quite famous and was necessary for a cool-down on a hot evening in Rome.

6:15 PM: The Pantheon (Timed-Entry)

After visiting the other top things to do in Rome, the Pantheon wasn’t all that impressive, but it was still worth it. 

Okay, I take that back, it’s actually over 2,000 years old. So maybe not as impressive at first look, but historically, yes.

The hole in the top, though, is quite intriguing.  It’s called the “Oculus” or eye, and actually support the building structure, and provides natural light.

The tickets are timed-entry but do not sell out as quickly as other things to do in Rome. We booked them the day before. 

7:00 PM: Dinner 

I spent so much time planning the 2-day Rome itinerary that I didn’t leave much time to plan where to eat (except for La Gattabuia). But for our first time trip to Rome, I like to think I didn’t do so bad making choices on a whim.

In the area around Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon, while yes, many spots have a “tourist trap” vibe, they can still serve up something pretty delicious.

Since I was exhausted and we had to go back to our hotel to prepare to leave the next day, we kept it simple: pizza.

I spotted and the pizza is by the weight. It was on the pricier end, but DAMN, amazing. Crispy and fluffy crust, loaded with toppings. Ideal if you want something that’s not only satisfying but quick to pick up. 

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